The East is Rising

The East End Social hit Glasgow this April for the first time and is already providing the east of the city with an exciting and eclectic string of musical events and community workshops in musical disciplines such as beatboxing and percussion. Previously based in Bridgeton, the festival’s relocation this year was based on the opportunity for widespread recognition that the Commonwealth Games provided. With the world’s eyes on Glasgow, the opportunity for far-reaching impact was supplied by the boom in tourism from the end of June. As well as this, the project’s presence in Glasgow simultaneously to the Commonwealth Games contributed variety and contrast in terms of events available to the public.

Run by Chemikal Underground, an independent label based in the east end of Glasgow, the project aims to improve the community’s access to music and to stimulate the arts in the area of the city that the label calls home. Chemikal Underground, the label behind acts such as Mogwai, RM Hubbert, and The Phantom Band, also aim to bring music to the part of the city that has struggled in past years to keep up with the cultural events hosted throughout the centre, west end, and south side. The combination of community projects, intimate concerts, and large-scale events promise a thrilling month for the city as the Social reaches it’s end in August.

The project’s crowning glory is The Last Big Weekend, a two-day long festival in Richmond Park on the 30th and 31st of August. The show is headlined by Glaswegian legends Mogwai, in the same year of the release of their eighth studio album, Rave Tapes and the reissue of their 1999 LP, Come On Die Young, and so the Last Weekend will top off a triumphant year for the band. Day tickets will set you back £38.50, and weekend tickets are £70; don’t let that stop you though, as the weekend promises a thrilling combination of genres courtesy of a stunning line-up. Homegrown talent prevails with Scottish acts such as Honeyblood, Hudson Mohawke, former Sub Club residents Optimo, and 2014 Scottish Album of the Year Award winners Young Fathers taking the stage alongside other acts from throughout Scotland and the rest of the UK.

The wealth of talent that will be gracing the stage in Richmond Park will be the climactic culmination of months of musical events and workshops, and is surely a weekend not to miss.

The East End Social can be caught around various areas of the city, such as cinemas, libraries, and parks. It runs through to the end of August. Tickets for all events, including The Last Big Weekend, can be bought online at www.eastendsocial.com.